Blackfriars, London

Coordinates: 51°30′43″N 0°06′14″W / 51.512°N 0.104°W / 51.512; -0.104
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Blackfriars
Blackfriars is located in Greater London
Blackfriars
Blackfriars
Location within Greater London
Sui generis
Administrative areaGreater London
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townLONDON
Postcode districtEC4
Dialling code020
PoliceCity of London
FireLondon
AmbulanceLondon
UK Parliament
London Assembly
List of places
UK
England
London
51°30′43″N 0°06′14″W / 51.512°N 0.104°W / 51.512; -0.104

Blackfriars is in central London, specifically the south-west corner of the City of London.

Blackfriars Priory

The City of London, which has extended very little, in the late middle ages. The once wholly walled square mile is nationally referred to as "The City". Locally is one of the notable extensions, meaning Blackfriars forms the south-west corner of the City, save for Temple which is technically a special category in local government.

The name first occurs in records of 1317 in

Katherine Parr
, Henry's sixth and final wife, was born in an associated parish.

Local wharves of Puddle Dock

Until the early 20th century the local wharves were linked to the main street by the formerly narrow street Puddle Dock. These stood by an often dredged up to, pier- and mooring post-lined, substantial mudbank of the City – in the south-east of modern Blackfriars. Among these were Wheatsheaf Wharf. Paul's Stairs is east of the modern floating pier, leading to the much narrowed, wholly tidal foreshore (meaning immersed for much of the tidal phases).[2]

Amenities

Some of the buildings were later leased to a group of entrepreneurs who created the Blackfriars Theatre on the site, near Shakespeare's Globe Theatre which stood almost directly across the river. In 1632, the Society of Apothecaries (a livery company), acquired the late medieval guesthouse which they converted as their base. This was destroyed in the Great Fire of London of 1666 but the Society rebuilt it, becoming today's Apothecaries' Hall due north of the station.

At the very centre of the zone, in typical London equidistance from stations post-pariochial terms, is

Blackfriars Millennium Pier, a stop for river-bus services on London River Services
.

The

Black Friar pub. Further clockwise, facing, are the Bank of New York/Mellon building and the Mermaid Theatre
, now a conference centre.

The forerunner station stood south of the river,

Blackfriars Bridge railway station
, no major trace of which remains. It was closed to passengers in 1885 when the current station opened, as "St Pauls" for some decades.

Listed buildings

The Black Friar, a public house with a few apartments above has a rare, Flatiron Building shape and is Grade II* listed.
It is the narrowest building facing the station's riverside gyratory which is the heart of the modern informal definition.

One or two elaborate streets of Blackfriars were well repaired after the City was heavily bombed in the Blitz (1940 to 1945). These, of genuine Victorian or city Georgian architecture, are frequently sets for film and television series. These include Sherlock Holmes and David Copperfield.[3]

Burials at Blackfriars, London

Neighbouring parts of London

Gallery

See also

List of monastic houses in London

References

Further reading